1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fuel cell for a microcapsule-type robot and a microcapsule-type robot that uses the fuel cell. In particular, the present invention relates to a fuel cell for a microcapsule-type robot in which alcohol or an aqueous alcohol solution is used as a fuel and hydrogen peroxide or an aqueous hydrogen peroxide solution is used as an oxidizing agent, and a microcapsule-type robot that uses the fuel cell.
2. Description of the Background
An endoscope is widely used to examine or treat lesions of the internal organs in a human body without performing surgery that incises the skin. However, when patients are examined or diagnosed using a cable endoscope, they may experience pain and discomfort, and thus, these procedures have not been welcomed by patients. This owes primarily to the significant size of the endoscope itself and the sensation of a wire that supplies power to the endoscope. Recently, patients are subjected to a general anesthetic so that they can avoid these discomforts and pain. However, the use of such a general anesthetic can be dangerous, so endoscopy with anesthesia is typically avoided.
In order to overcome these problems, indirect procedures including virtual colonoscopy and gene examination methods have been developed. However, a doctor cannot directly observe and treat an affected part or perform a biopsy, etc.
In order to overcome the above problem, a microcapsule-type endoscope has been developed in which a unit that photographs and transmits images is installed in a swallowable capsule. When a patient swallows the microcapsule-type endoscope, the endoscope travels along the digestive organs while obtaining image information from the organs and transmits the image information to a receiving unit outside the patient's body. The receiving unit interprets the received image information which is used to diagnose the condition of the patient's organs. The conventional cable endoscope can diagnose only the large intestine or stomach, but the conventional microcapsule-type endoscope can diagnose the small intestine in addition to the large intestine and stomach. Thus, the microcapsule-type endoscope provides a wider range of medical diagnosis.
A mercury oxide (HgO2) cell that uses mercury is used as a power supply for the microcapsule-type endoscope. When the sheathing of the microcapsule-type endoscope is damaged due to gastric acids and various enzymes in the human body and other unexpected chemical reactions of digested foods, etc., there is a risk that the body will be exposed to the mercury. In addition, the mercury oxide cell has a short operating time of 4-6 hours, so while it passes through the small intestine, the power may be exhausted and thus the large and small intestines cannot be diagnosed at the same time.
A microcapsule-type endoscope that is equipped with a pose control and/or a location control unit has been developed (Korean Patent Application No. 10-2002-81935), but such an endoscope consumes more power than a conventional microcapsule-type endoscope that does not have the pose or location control unit. Thus, there is an increasing need to develop a power supply that has a larger capacity for use in a microcapsule-type endoscope.